Corbeling
Masonry courses wherein each is extended out farther from the one below to form a rough arch-shaped lintel, vault, or dome.
Illustrated Dictionary of Architecture Copyright © 2012, 2002, 1998 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved
corbel
corbel, 2
brick wall having a corbel, 1
1. In masonry, a projection or one of a series of projections, each stepped progressively outward with increasing height, and usually projecting from a wall or chimney; serves as a support for an overhanging member or course, 1 above, or as a purely decorative element.
2. A projecting stone that supports a superincumbent weight.
3. A heavy bracket, often decorated, that is set into an adobe wall to act as a bearing surface to support a roof beam.
McGraw-Hill Dictionary of Architecture and Construction. Copyright © 2003 by McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.